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West Virginia Income Maintenance Manual Chapter 10

West Virginia Income Maintenance Manual Page 84 Chapter 10 The Case Maintenance Process

APPENDIX B: SPECIAL PROCEDURES FOR RSDI/SSI COLA INCREASES Recipients of federal benefits, such as Retirement, Survivors, and Disability Insurance (RSDI), Supplemental Security Income (SSI), Black Lung, or Veterans Affairs Benefits, may receive periodic cost-of-living (COLA) increases. RSDI and SSI increases are handled in accordance with instructions in Appendix A of this chapter. All other federal benefit cost-of-living increases are treated as any other change, except that the client is not required to report the change nor is repayment required when the client fails to do so. The following provides procedures for use of RSDI and SSI COLA information for applicants and clients. B.1 APPLICANTS For applications with eligibility beginning in November or December, the Worker must use the current year’s amount and allow the eligibility system Mass Change to update the income. The Worker must not enter an anticipated income amount for January’s benefits. Applicant Example 1: An application for SNAP benefits is made on December 15, 2025. The client reports his SSI is $967 for December and $994 for January. The Worker enters $967 as the client’s income and does not code the eligibility system to anticipate the $994 for January’s benefits. He records this in case comments. The SSI is updated when the eligibility system mass change occurs. For applications with eligibility beginning in January, the Worker must use the new amount of SSI and/or RSDI that is effective in January and not wait for the eligibility system COLA mass change to update the income. Applicant Example 2: An application for Medicaid is made on January 5, 2026. The client reports his RSDI is currently $1,250. The Worker must use this amount in determining his eligibility for Medicaid. NOTE: State On-Line Query (SOLQ) may display the updated SSI and RSDI amounts based on the COLA at the end of the current year. See Section 6.3. The Worker must determine the correct income to use for any benefits with eligibility beginning prior to January. This applies to all programs, including the Low-Income Energy Assistance Program (LIEAP).